The Final 40: Looking Ahead To The Final Games Of The Regular Season

2022.23

NHL Public Relations

April 10, 2023

The final five days of the season will include 40 games and determine 13 playoff seeds, seven First Round matchups, three division titles and the final three teams that will qualify for the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs – which start one week from today.

* This is the first time since 2008-09 that at least seven First Round matchups are still “TBD” entering the final five days of the regular season.

* While Vegas and Edmonton have secured home ice in the Pacific Division, there could be movement Monday as Seattle (45-26-8, 98 points) will look to overtake Los Angeles (45-25-10, 100 points) into third place. The Kraken last ranked among the top three in the division through games of March 13 but have held the first Wild Card every day since (a span of 27 days entering Monday).

* For the first time since the Atlantic, Metropolitan, Central and Pacific Divisions were introduced in 2013-14, the No. 1 seed in at least three divisions has a lead of two points or less entering the final five days of scheduled play. This excludes the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons whose schedules were paused or extended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

* Winnipeg have been in a playoff spot for 165 consecutive days dating to Oct. 27 (when they had eight points) but hold a maximum advantage of three points in the three-team battle for the final Western Conference playoff spot.

* The Predators will go head-to-head against a club in the Western Conference Wild Card race for a second straight game following a defeat at the hands of the Jets on Saturday.

* Four players enter the final stretch of the 2022-23 season within six points of a 100-point campaign: Elias Pettersson (38-61—99 in 77 GP), Mitchell Marner (30-68—98 in 78 GP), Erik Karlsson (23-75—98 in 79 GP) and Jack Hughes (42-54—96 in 76 GP). Should they all hit the mark it would bring the season total to 13 – only five seasons in NHL history have seen 13+ players score 100 points (most recently 21 in 1992-93).

* Connor McDavid has a chance to become the first player in NHL history to record three separate point streaks of 15+ games in a single season. It would be the fifth such streak of his career, which would equal Peter Stastny (5x) for the third-most point streaks of 15+ games in NHL history behind Wayne Gretzky (19x) and Mario Lemieux (7x).

* A trio of players in reach of their first career 50-goal season could bump the League’s overall total in 2022-23 to seven, with Brayden Point (49 G), Tage Thompson (46 G) and Jason Robertson (45 G) looking to join Connor McDavid (64 G), David Pastrnak (60 G), Mikko Rantanen (54 G) and Leon Draisaitl (51 G). It has been 27 years since the NHL saw seven or more 50-goal scorers in one season (8 in 1995-96).

* All three players on the verge of 50 goals would end lengthy franchise droughts: Point would be Tampa Bay’s first 50-goal scorer in 11 years (Steven Stamkos in 2011-12); Thompson would be Buffalo’s first player to hit the benchmark in 30 years (Alexander Mogilny & Pat LaFontaine in 1992-93); and Robertson the first in Stars/North Stars history in 29 years (Mike Modano in 1993-94).